Blair puts proposals on agenda for Ahern meeting

The British Prime Minister has personally drawn up a paper on the structure and workings of North-South bodies, the most difficult component of the agreement on Northern Ireland.

Mr Tony Blair's paper, drafted over the weekend, has been presented to the Ulster Unionist leader, Mr David Trimble. Mr Blair's North-South structure would provide for "implementation" bodies.

It is understood Mr Blair took considerable trouble to set out, and understand, the way in which devolved powers, such as trade and tourism, would operate in the North-South structure.

Mr Trimble's reaction to the paper will be discussed by the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and Mr Blair at a special Anglo-Irish meeting in 10 Downing Street tonight.

The "summit" has been arranged to give time to assess the state of the negotiations. It is expected to last four hours and only a short statement will be issued afterwards.

The Taoiseach signalled in the Dail yesterday the gulf to be bridged between the Government and the unionists in the next nine days. There were still difficulties with the proposed assembly, he said, though not necessarily from the Government's point of view.

The North-South dimension was still "a very difficult area". The constitutional questions had yet to be agreed, though they had been teased out extensively.

But it is understood the Government is experiencing considerable difficulty in securing the UUP's agreement for changes in policing in the North.

With 18 six-seat constituencies in the North for the assembly elections, a new difficulty has also arisen over the prospects of the smaller parties winning seats. The Government is looking for a mechanism to have these parties represented.

There is also a growing fear in Government circles that, with a deadline of tomorrow week for reaching agreement, pressure may be placed on Mr Ahern to "split the difference", so to speak, in the participants' negotiating positions on the North-South structure.

This has engendered the belief that striking a consensus between the two positions, in the end, would be insufficient to secure voters' support for changes to Articles 2 and 3 of the Constitution.

The Government will be anxious to secure a signal from the Prime Minister tonight that the unionists will be prepared to sign up to a powerful North-South structure in the agreement. This has not yet been forthcoming.

Meanwhile, the Taoiseach was questioned in the Dail about his proposal for a Border poll every five years on the status of Northern Ireland. The Fine Gael leader, Mr John Bruton, asked how this would contribute to the stability required to ensure that North-South and internal arrangements worked harmoniously initially.

The Democratic Left leader, Mr Proinsias De Rossa, said the idea that demographics would be the trigger for holding a poll would be obnoxious.

Mr Ahern said the idea of regular Border polls had been around for years and had been discussed in the talks. "I see these proposals as something that could happen in time," he added.

The Government now believes it may be Monday before it can assess the prospects of agreement. The Northern talks chairman, Senator George Mitchell, has set tomorrow as the deadline for making progress. A revised synthesis paper may be produced on Friday.